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NinjaOne IT Asset Management (ITAM): Lifecycle Management

  • Last Updated April 6, 2026

Topic

Track a device from the point of purchase to the day you decommission it, including its core asset information, custom fields, and related activities.

Environment

NinjaOne IT Asset Management (ITAM)

Description

When you install the NinjaOne agent on a device, NinjaOne uses the system serial number or basic input/output system (BIOS) serial number, organization, and device name to match data to an existing provisioning device. NinjaOne will automatically convert a device between unmanaged and managed states depending on its current status and add an entry to the Activities feed.

itam_lifecycle_activity.png
Figure 1: Example of a monitored device that will convert to managed (click to enlarge)

Index

Select a category to learn more:

Compatibility and Prerequisites

Currently, NinjaOne IT Asset Management only supports lifecycle tracking for the following operating systems (OS):

  • Microsoft Windows
  • Apple macOS (not including mobile device management [MDM])
  • Linux

A system administrator in NinjaOne must grant technicians access to this feature. Activate the following permissions in their account or role:

  • System: Device Administration must be set to Allowed. Technicians with this permission can configure health statuses and custom fields.
  • Devices: Decommission Devices can be set to Allowed (optional). Technicians with this permission will be able to decommission devices, including uninstalling agents, stopping monitoring, and hiding devices from default views.

About Lifecycle States

The following sections outline the various states for a device in NinjaOne and how NinjaOne determines the state.

For the purpose of this article, an entry point sets the device's state, and an exit point explains why the device's state changed.

  • Staged: This is a preliminary, unmonitored state that provides only the data necessary to find a match during discovery.
  • Decommissioned: This state preserves the device's currently collected data, but the device is not monitored. Decommissioned NMS devices will contain a list of all nodes that they are responsible for monitoring. Devices moved to a decommissioned state will no longer be monitored by the delegate.

Unmanaged Device Lifecycle

  • Entry point: Created manually, through API or Discovered Devices, or imported via CSV.
  • Exit point: Decommissioned or deleted.
  • Agent behavior: Cannot be matched to a provisioned device and cannot install the remote monitoring management (RMM) agent.

Unmanaged (Staged) Device Lifecycle

  • Entry point: Created manually, through API or Discovered Devices, or imported via CSV.
  • Exit point: Managed, decommissioned or deleted.
  • Agent behavior: Agent installed and matched to provisioning device. The agent will be uninstalled if you delete the device.

Managed Device Lifecycle

  • Entry point:
    • A device with a managed class type is created in NinjaOne via one of our existing mechanisms (agent installation, MDM enrollment, NMS or VM monitoring, cloud monitors).
    • A provisioning device is matched to a new device with the RMM agent installed, and NinjaOne updates the state to be managed. NinjaOne only supports matching to devices in the following states:
      • Unmanaged (monitorable): staged.
      • Unmanaged (monitorable): end of lifecycle (obsolete).
      • Decommissioned (staged).
      • Managed (if existing deduplication logic does not find a match).
  • Exit point: Decommissioned, deleted, or unmanaged.
  • Agent behavior:
    • Agents can connect and send data to devices.
    • Installation will trigger a match or create a new device if unable to find the provisioning device.
    • The existing deduplication logic will match this device during reinstallation.

Decommissioned Device Lifecycle

  • Entry point: The node is decommissioned in NinjaOne or marked as decommissioned in the public API.
  • Exit point: Deleted in NinjaOne or via public API, or set to unmanaged.
  • Agent behavior: The agent is uninstalled after connecting with a decommissioned device.

Track Your Devices

You can track devices before managing them in NinjaOne. You can use a prefixed form or import multiple devices at once via CSV.

When a new managed device is added to NinjaOne will use the following data to match an existing provisioning device:

  • System serial number
  • BIOS serial number
  • Organization name
  • Device name

To add an unmanaged device in NinjaOne, perform the following steps:

  1. Click the plus sign (+) and select Device, and then click Unmanaged device.
add unmanaged device.png
Figure 2: Add an unmanaged device
  1. Select whether you want to add the device manually or import it from a CSV file.

Manually Create Devices

To manually create a device, complete all fields to the best of your knowledge. 

  1. Click Add to select a device role for the endpoint. Refer to NinjaOne Endpoint Management: Device Roles to learn more about device roles.
device lifecycle_add device role.png
Figure 3: Add device role
  1. Select the Create another device checkbox to create another device.
create another device.png
Figure 4: Add another unmanaged device

Import Devices Via CSV

To import unmanaged devices via a CSV file, perform the following steps:

  1. Click Add to select a device role and then click Download Template.
lifecycle_download template.png
Figure 5: Download template to import devices
  1. Open the file and enter data into all spreadsheet columns to the best of your knowledge. Organization and location names must match the data in NinjaOne.
  2. Save the file and paste it into the Import wizard dialog.
  3. Click Preview to test the file.
  4. Review all errors, if applicable. Some data, such as a 365 license ID, may be required to proceed. If necessary, click Re-Upload.
reupload.png
Figure 6: Re-upload template to import devices
  1. If all data is accurate and accepted by NinjaOne, click Save Changes.

Configure Settings for the Device

Before you can track the device in NinjaOne, you must add it. To learn how, refer to NinjaOne IT Asset Management (ITAM): Add an Unmanaged Device in NinjaOne.

After you add it, you can associate the policy, owner, tags, related items, tickets, and other settings to the device. To do so, open the device dashboard and click the Edit button. Use any of the options to add the relevant data or take action on the device.

device dashboard_edit.png
Figure 7: Add data for the unmanaged device (click to enlarge)

Decommission a Device in NinjaOne

Decommissioning a device in NinjaOne removes the agent software. No automations will run against the device even though it is still present in the console.

To decommission a device, open the device dashboard and click Edit. Select Decommission device.

If you are decommissioning an NMS endpoint, you must delete its delegate first.
decommission device.png
Figure 8: Decommission a device in NinjaOne

Decommission an MDM Device

To move an MDM device to a decommissioned state, use the following actions based on OS:

Operating SystemEnrollment TypeAction
ApplePersonally ownedUnenroll
AppleCompany ownedErase
AndroidPersonally or company ownedErase

To learn how to perform these actions, refer to NinjaOne Mobile Device Management (MDM): Unenroll, Erase, or Delete a Device.

Use NinjaOne Billing with Unmanaged, Staged, and Decommissioned Devices

You can use NinjaOne's Billing tool with unmanaged, staged, and decommissioned devices. NinjaOne will allow the following behavior:

  • Staged and decommissioned devices will be excluded from role selection by default.
  • Staged and decommissioned devices will be included in a selected group if activated in the saved filter.
  • Unmanaged devices will continue to work as expected and will be included based on role or group selection.

Search for Staged and Decommissioned Devices in NinjaOne

You can use the Devices search page in NinjaOne to find staged and decommissioned devices.

From the Devices search page, click More filters and select Lifecycle State. In the new drop-down menu, select the lifecycle state for the device you want to find.

device search_lifecycle state.png
Figure 9: Find decommissioned devices in NinjaOne

You can take the following actions on staged and decommissioned devices from the Devices search page:

  • Create a ticket.
  • Edit the policy, organization, assigned user, tags, or asset status.
  • Delete the device.
For staged devices, you can also decommission them.

Additional Resources

Refer to NinjaOne IT Asset Management: Resource Catalog to learn more about asset management in NinjaOne.

To learn more about NinjaOne Billing, refer to NinjaOne Billing: Getting Started with Professional Services Automation (PSA).

FAQ

Next Steps